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Human Rights Commission to assess welfare of children in immigration detention

Updated
Tue 4 Feb 2014, 5:40 PM AEDT

Australia's Human Rights Commission is set to launch a formal inquiry into children in immigration detention, having received "minimal" cooperation from the Government on the issue.

The inquiry will examine the impact of detention on children's mental health, rates of self-harm and how children are being assessed before being sent offshore.

Commission president Gillian Triggs says one of the main aims of the inquiry is to extract information from the Immigration Department.

"I think I'd have to say over the last few months, we've had minimal cooperation in relation to the kinds of details that I need to know, particularly mental health, self-harm and the processes for those that are transferred," she told AM.

"In particular, we'd like to understand more about the mental health of these children. The instances of self-harm, how they're being treated when they're manifesting conditions of extreme anxiety.

"I'd also like to understand how they're being assessed to be sent offshore to Nauru. Why some are being sent, why some are not, et cetera."

Immigration Minister Scott Morrison says the Government will cooperate with the commission's inquiry, but noted it only investigates the issue when the Coalition is in power.

"I notice... we're now going to face another inquiry from the Human Rights Commission into children in detention," the minister told Macquarie Radio.

"There were no children in held detention when the Coalition lost office in 2007 - there were over a thousand when Labor lost office.

"The last time that the Human Rights Commission decided to do an inquiry into children in detention it was when the Howard government was in office, now they're doing one the Abbott Government is in office."

Mr Morrison says it is for the commission to explain why it had not inquired into the issue when Labor was in power, despite the former government's record.

He also rejected claims the Immigration Department had not cooperated with the Human Rights Commission.

"The political circumstances are perhaps different today; the public has, in some respect, become used to the idea that we keep children in detention", she said.

"So maybe it would be optimistic to imagine that we'd have quite the same impact this time around.

"Nonetheless, when I speak to people generally, I find that they're absolutely astonished that we continue to have children for many, many months, and sometimes years, in closed detention behind these wire fences in very restricted circumstances."

Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young has welcomed the move while expressing regret at the need for an inquiry.

"The sad fact is, there are hundreds of children being held in immigration detention, a number of whom have been held in detention for six months and are set to be detained for much longer," she said.

"The mental health of these children is deteriorating rapidly, as is their development."

I'd have to say over the last few months, we've had minimal co-operation in relation to the kinds of details that I need to know.

Human Rights Commission president Gillian Triggs

The non-profit group Children out of Immigration Detention, or "Chilout", has welcomed the inquiry but is urging the Government to allow the commission access to detention centres that its own representatives cannot visit without an invitation from Canberra.

"We'll get a thorough picture of what's happening on the mainland and Christmas Island, and we know that upwards of 800 children are suffering in those locations, so absolutely that's part of the picture," spokeswoman Sophie Peer said.

"But yes, we'll be missing a huge gap if the commission cannot properly and independently go to Nauru."

Detention periods too long: Triggs

Professor Triggs acknowledges that in the past nine months, children have been moved out of mandatory detention into community detention faster.

However, she is still concerned about how long they remain in detention.

"We're not against mandatory detention for a period that is appropriate and proportionate to establishing the identity of children, whether they've got the vaccinations, whether they've got they have the medical care and treatment they need," she said.

We're not against mandatory detention for a period that is appropriate and proportionate to establishing the identity of children.

Professor Gillian Triggs

"However, we are concerned that when the time moves behind three to four months - to six, to 12, to 15 months - the likelihood is that we will be finding that there are breaches of international law.

Professor Triggs says the inquiry would also seek public submissions, including from those with first-hand accounts of life in detention.

She hopes "to encourage people who were children 10, 12, 14 years ago, to come forward".

"I hope with very positive stories about they're managing their lives now as citizens and residents of Australia, but also to learn about what their struggles were, how they survived those months and years in detention, and how they think it's affected their lives," she said.